Year: 2009

SurvivalBlog Reader Survey: Conveniently Bypassed Areas

When working with my consulting clients, I often discuss channelization and lines of drift. Most major routes out of major cities will become very dangerous places to be in the event of a massive involuntary urban exodus. Imagine the situation WTSHTF in small towns on either side of the Snoqualmie Pass in Washington, or near I-80 across the Donner Pass in California, or on the Columbia River Gorge (that divides Oregon and Washington), or virtually every other stretch of interstate freeway that is within 150 miles of a metropolitan region. These channelized areas (also called “refugee lines of drift” by …


Economics and Investing:

Reader Greg C. found this: Treasury needs record $361 Billion April-June borrowing. (Greg’s comment: “And while we are all watching a little flu bug down south….”) From G.N.C.: Roubini: ‘Suckers Rally’ In Stocks To Fade. “It’s not a true recovery. It’s just a bear-market rally, it’s a suckers’ rally.” Steve in southern Oregon sent this item: Jim Rogers Isn’t Buying a U.S. Stock Recovery Items from The Economatrix: Chrysler Reaches Deal With Union, Fiat Before Deadline Flu could boost government intervention further From Michael Panzner’s blog: Evidence to the Contrary. “Despite all the evidence to the contrary, mainstream types keep …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Rourke sent a link to an article in the Kansas City Star: Some stockpiling to prepare should times turn perilous    o o o Thanks to MVR for this: The Geomagnetic Apocalypse — And How to Stop It    o o o California Shooting Fair Closes for Lack of Ammo (Thanks to FloridaGuy for the link.)    o o o KAF flagged this: Hardtack, Once a Staple of Sailing Ships, Still Prospers in Hawaii. It has great shelf life, especially when vacuum packed. BTW, I believe that the author is mistaken when describing the “joke” origin of the term “Saloon …




Mexican Flu Update

The new H1N1 swine-avian-human influenza is certainly getting its share of headlines. It will be interesting to see how this event progresses, and the reactions of the populace and governments. Here are some updates: The Mexican Flu now has a Wikipedia page that seems to be kept quite up to date. Here is a Google map showing the locales of confirmed and suspected cases Doc D. mentioned this piece at Mashable: How To: Track Swine Flu Online SurvivalBlog readers in Texas and Southern California have already noted shortages of Sambucol at their local drug stores. It is safe to assume …


Letter Re: Sambucol and the Cytokine Storm

Jim, Reading through your flu background article [Protecting Your Family From an Influenza Pandemic], I found your mention of [the Elderberry extract] Sambucol. I’m going to get some but you might want to read the article on Elderberry posted at the fluwiki web site. It sounds generally positive about Sambucol for seasonal flu, but does say this regarding avian flu: “However, elderberry also increases cytokine production. One specific concern with H5N1 infections is the possibility that this strain of flu may induce cytokine storm, leading to ARDS and the high mortality associated with it. It is unknown if the increased …


Letter Re: Caught Between OPSEC and a Hard Place

Jim, A friend of mine had a recent encounter with the police that illustrates the importance of Operational Security (OPSEC), even for the tiniest details. My friend is a survivalist and keeps both an SKS (unloaded but with ammo nearby) and a CZ handgun (loaded) in the cab of his truck. This is basically what Boston T. Party and others recommend: a handgun instantly at the ready and a rifle nearby. My friend does not have a CCW permit and in Washington State you must have a permit to have a loaded gun in a vehicle. He was pulled over …


Economics and Investing:

From Z.T.:Finance officials at odds over IMF funding plan Spotted over at Gold-Eagle: At the Heart of America’s Economic Problems, by Paul Mladjenovic Items from The Economatrix: Bank Industry Await Results of Stress Tests GM and Chrysler: Goodnight G-8’s First Bankruptcy “To paraphrase Churchill, the UK economy is now a disaster, wrapped in a catastrophe inside a calamity. And someone just flushed the key down the proverbial…” Volcker Punctures the Nonsense (The Mogambo Guru) The Fed’s Cash Machine Fed Says Government Ready to Save Stress-Tested Banks Microsoft Has First Quarterly Fall in Revenue in 23 Years Germany’s Slump Risks “Explosive” …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Gloria spotted this article on urban survival: Live off the land — in the city    o o o Brian H. mentioned: Striking EDF Power Utility Workers Cut Power to French Homes    o o o Courtesy of Cheryl: Basics For The Beginning Gardener    o o o When it comes to AR-15 uppers, I thought that I seen it all. There are barreled AR uppers on the market for everything from .22 LR , to 5.45×39 Russian, to 8mm Mauser Belt-Fed, to .50 Browning. But this crossbow upper surprised me. FWIW, there are a lot of things that I’d …




The Mexican Flu and You

In the past 24 hours I’ve received dozens of e-mails from SurvivalBlog readers about the emerging Mexican Flu. Some news stories have included cryptic comments from heath officials, implying that the mechanism of infection makes this particular virus “very difficult to contain.” This leads me to conclude that those infected have a long latency period during which they are infectious, yet, they do not display frank symptoms. This does not bode well for any hopes of containing the spread of the virus. Then we hear a CDC official stating: “The swine flu virus contains four different gene segments representing both …


Letter Re: Atheism and Choosing Your Neighborhood

James: I am a new reader to SurvivalBlog and a big fan of “Patriots” ., I have been reading all the archives and old posts, and I would just like to clear one thing up. I am an atheist. I don’t believe that there is sufficient evidence to prove the existence of a supreme power. This does not make make me a bad person. There have been some posts about choosing your neighbors that have said Christians and Jewish people make best neighbors because they are “God fearing” etc. Just because I don’t believe in a god does not mean …


Letter Re: Learning the Details of Self-Sufficiency

Jim, I’d like to add an additional perspective on the letter on “Learning the Details of Self-Sufficiency” — the conscious competence learning model. I’d like to pull back the shade a bit on why ‘just buying stuff’ and reading books isn’t going to cut it when the balloon goes up. Many folks are ‘buying things’, reading books, searching the internet with the thought that when the time comes, they will begin living the self-sufficient lifestyle in the country. The aforementioned letter points out the folly of this approach. I just want to take a step back and look at why …